Starlight
by Jonathan Anubian
Summary: During a C ranked mission, where Team 7 and Team 8 join forces to route out some bandits, everything goes wrong when a mysterious violet moon suddenly appears. From that point on strange things begin to occur in Konoha. Hoping to get to the bottom of the mysterious violet moon he saw that night Naruto stumbles upon an S-ranked secret that he must now help protect with his life.
1. New Moon

Disclaimer: I do not own Naruto. Simple as that.

There is no mature content in this chapter, unless you count bones snapping as mature content.

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Staring at the scroll of orders given to him by a Tokubetsu Jonin he began to wonder if the old man had gone crazy. Why would anyone in their right mind entrust him with such a high priority mission? Deep inside he couldn't help but feel a shiver of excitement at the prospect of being given such a chance to prove himself, but it was offset by fear.

Thinking back to the first time he had realised something was horribly wrong he sighed. The blonde had been on a mission when it happened. Both his team, team seven, and Kurenai's team, team eight, had been assigned a hunting mission. It was pitch black in the forest when they finally caught up to the criminals. They had decided to camp out in the clearing of a forest in order to start a cooking fire. While Hinata ensured they were the right people from afar, and Shino tagged them in case they decided to bolt, Sasuke and Sakura set up traps around the perimeter just in case. This left Naruto and Kiba as the main attackers with Kakashi and Kurenai as back up to make sure they didn't get themselves killed.

The stage was set and on the signal they attacked as a group. The darkness around them was a blessing of the forecast as clouds covered a full moon. Using that darkness to their advantage they were able to take the criminals by surprise. As the fighting broke out around him he found himself fighting back to back with the Inuzuka teen and his canine companion. The fight was going well and they had already captured more than half of the criminals when the ground suddenly became awash with light. Looking up from his place on the ground, crouched to avoid being a target, he saw the full moon in all of it's glory. But something about it was off, wrong. Instead of it's soft blue light it had turned a deep shade of violet and shivers began to run down his spine.

Without warning his body began to pour sweat as a burning sensation rolled through his veins. It was as if his blood were suddenly made of liquid ice. Something was wrong, very, very, wrong. With a cry he repelled the sword of a man who had snuck behind him and turned to embed a kunai in his chest. His eyes began to sting as the light around him became far brighter than it should have been.

Worried about his team-mates he turned when he heard a choking sound off to his left. Toppling over from the pain his vision blurred momentarily. Blinking away the haze his eyes fell on the form of the Inuzuka and widened. The black eyed boy had fallen to his knees, his body appearing to go rigid as if he were in a state of shock. Naruto felt his heart begin to pound painfully in his chest as the fear of losing one of his class-mates slowly dawned on him. It felt as if they were caught in some sort of genjutsu, but if that were the case then he was certain his teacher and Kurenai would have broken it by now.

"K-Ki...ba..." Reaching his hand toward the wolf boy he tried to fight the burning sensation as he slowly rose from the ground. Stumbling forward he came upon the unconscious form of Akamaru and knelt to check if the ninken had been injured. Listening to the heartbeat and breathing of the dog he was glad to note that Akamaru had just passed out, probably from the same form of genjutsu he was experiencing. Hearing a blood-curdling scream he whipped around and almost fell on his face from the sudden nausea. Kiba's eyes had gone large, larger than Naruto had ever seen, and he was staring up at that violet moon as if it were the most beautiful, and terrible, thing in the world. Tears streamed down his face as his bones began to break and body slowly began to deform. Naruto stood there, transfixed, as those black orbs slowly turned a molten gold, as if something were pouring the color slowly into them. The sound and sight before him made him feel sick to his stomach but try as he might his voice would not come out, it was as if his vocal chords had frozen from fear.

Unable to close his eyes he watched Kiba's transformation from gruesome start to horrifying finish. He had gone from snarky shinobi teen to snarling beast in what seemed like an excruciating amount of time. Keeping a hold on Akamaru, in case this were a trick by the enemy, he sat perfectly still as the beast loped toward him. The blonde's heart thudded in his chest and he held his breath as the monster that had been Kiba glowered down at him with glowing eyes and sharp fangs bared.

Jumping as he heard a low growl he couldn't help but to shudder as the beast took in his scent. Cocking it's head to the side the beast suddenly snarled and jumped out of the way of a set of throwing knives as they hit the ground where he had been a moment ago. With one last look back at Naruto the large beast sprang after the man that had thrown them. Heaving a shuddering sigh of relief he closed his eyes tight and felt the world spin. He knew that he had to stay awake but something just beyond his consciousness was calling him. Before he even had a chance to fight back his mind suddenly went black and he collapsed onto the ground, trembling.

"...to." Floating in the midst of the darkness he felt a stirring around him and tried to ignore it as best he could. "...ruto." Groaning he shook his head and frowned, he didn't want to wake up yet. "Naruto!" Vibrant blue eyes snapping open he hissed in pain and quickly brought his hands up to cover the now stinging orbs. Why was everything so freakishly bright? After a few moments he was able to look up into the relieved face of Sakura and the frowning face of Sasuke. Grunting he slowly sat up and felt the world suddenly turn. Holding his mouth he swallowed the bile that rose in his throat and tried to keep his breath even.

"Augh, what happened?" Huffing at him Sakura was about to begin her usual rant about how useless he could be when he heard someone come in through the window and glanced back to see his sensei mid entry. For a moment the Jonin seemed to narrow his eyes in surprise before his usual persona snapped back into place. Looking back at Sakura he waited until she was finished her little rant before he began to whine. "Yeah, yeah, but what Happened Sakura-chan? All I can remember is feeling like my blood was so cold it was boiling. Then I tried to help Akamaru while... wait; what happened to Kiba and Akamaru? Are they okay?" His concern for his class-mate seemed to cool off the pink haired girl as she slowly smiled to reassure her idiot of a team-mate that everything was going to be fine.

"Kakashi-sensei and Kurenai-sensei captured the rest of the criminals. Just as we were about to leave Kiba's family came by and said they would take care of him once they tracked him down. The doctors said we were all under the influence of a hallucinogenic drug combined with a powerful genjutsu. It isn't that surprising that we all saw strange... things..." Tapering off at the end lamely she shrugged before staring at the floor, her teal eyes looking haunted by what she had seen.

"So everything was all just a really bad trip?" Looking at those around him he began to wonder if that was even possible. Hinata hadn't seen anything strange, Kiba didn't smell anything odd, and neither of their Jonin instructors had sensed anything at all. No matter how he looked at it it just didn't add up.

"But..." Finally from the window he heard his teacher speak up. "Alright now, you all need to rest. The doctor said that the hallucinogens might still be in your system. You'll need to stay here for a few days before you can go back on active duty." Watching everyone's surprised looks when they finally noticed sensei's presence was a little odd to him. If he'd heard the Jonin enter the room then surely the rest of them had heard it too.

"Yes sensei." Sakura chirped with a smile. Sasuke just scowled as he turned and left the room, the pink haired girl hot on his heels. Gripping the hospital blankets he turned to look up at his sensei, questions burning in his mind. The look in his eyes must have tipped of his instructor because the man sighed and put a hand to his face.

"Naruto, I'm not going to answer any questions right now. Do as the doctors tell you and rest here. Understand?" Wanting to protest but feeling another wave of nausea he slowly nodded, which only aggravated his throbbing head. Laying back on the pillows he stared up at the ceiling with a scowl before closing his eyes and falling asleep.

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Well, I hope this is a better opening than the previous one, though this is just a Teaser~ This is Rated M for later chapters due to violence and sexual content.


	2. Crescent

Thank you all for your continued interest in my written work.  
I am still looking for an Editor. With an Editor I am able to get Chapters out faster.

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Warning: This is an AU. The time frame of the actual series will change from this point on. Some characters and events will happen, though they won't follow the chronological order of the anime or manga.

Disclaimer: I do not own any of the Cannon characters.

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Although the blonde was mostly asleep, laying on his side on the hospital bed, he swore he could hear the nurses outside his room. The past eight days had been miserable for poor Naruto as he spent his time staring at the ceiling or asleep. Every time someone came into the room he would wake, his hand going to his thigh where he usually kept his pouches of kunai. So far he'd been visited by his team-mates, Hokage-ji, Konohamaru, and Iruka. He thought he saw Hinata once but he couldn't be sure, since he'd been resting and she left after opening the door and looking in. But boredom wasn't his only problem. Ever since the incident with the strange moon he'd felt as though the world around him had suddenly expanded. Everything he touched, saw, heard, tasted, and smelled was more vivid than he could ever remember. Even now he could hear the nurses down the hall as they talked about their daily routines with each other and tried to divide the work between themselves.

"I was the one to work in that room yesterday. I don't want to do it again." Sighing as the realization of what they were talking about finally came to him he couldn't help but clench his fists. Although the nurses and doctors did their jobs properly he knew they didn't want to be around him.

"He's usually asleep isn't he? Just tip-toe around him and don't make eye contact if you don't want to talk." An exasperated sound came from the one nurse who had originally protested.

"Why can't we just give this task to someone else?" For a few moments he heard nothing but silence and assumed the conversation was over. Opening his eyes he looked out the window into the blue mid-morning sky.

"We could always ask... Her. She tends to all of the more eccentric Shinobi." Sounds of understanding and agreement from the others caught his attention and the blonde couldn't help but to focus back on them once more. A nurse who only tended to eccentric Shinobi? That didn't sound very good for him.

"I'll go see if she's on duty today." With that the group of nurses seemed to disband and they all went about their normal jobs. Pulling the blanket off his body he slowly eased himself out of the hospital bed and stood on wobbly legs for a moment, hand on the wall to keep himself from falling over. Normally he would have been cursing and bouncing around the room in protest but he just couldn't bring himself to; not with what little energy he had left.

The short walk to the attached bathroom was still strenuous, though he had no clue why. No matter what injury he'd sustained before it had always healed insanely fast. Though it had taken him some time to realize it on his own, and the reason why. But right now something inside his very chakra network seemed off. It was as if there was something else eating up all of his chakra reserves. It made him nauseous whenever he got up to walk around and his eyes ache when the sunlight streamed in through his window.

After using the bathroom he came back out into his room and almost tripped as his legs gave way suddenly. About to curse and bracing himself he was suddenly grabbed out of the air by someone who had been waiting outside the door.

"Op, almost had a bit of a spill there didn't we?" Looking up into kind blue eyes he suddenly froze. The woman was in her early twenties with long red hair that she wore in a ponytail down her back and had a very small, slightly angled, face. There was no fear or rejection in her eyes as she helped him over to his bed and sat him down with a smile.

"My name is Yuuko, I will be taking care of you from now on Uzumaki-san." Letting himself be tucked into bed he could do nothing but stare, wide eyed, as the young woman seemed to float around the room tidying everything. When she was finally finished she came back over and put her hand on his forehead suddenly, making him turn bright red in embarrassment. Something about her had a calming effect on him but he had no clue why. It was like her whole body gave off this calming energy that just seemed to make the nausea lessen.

"This must be so hard on you, poor child." Closing his eyes a little he was intending to nod in answer but noticed that something was wrong. Although she worked in the hospital she didn't smell like any of the other personnel. The scent of chemicals and old blood just wasn't present. Instead his nose was hit with multiple aromas all at once. Most of them were flower based, though some seemed familiar.

"You're not a nurse!" Moving away from her hand he opened his eyes and watched her carefully, ready to run or fight at a moments notice. But the woman stay where she was on the edge of the bed and only laughed lightly.

"I am a special kind of healer. The doctors call on me when unusual cases present themselves in their Shinobi, or when a particularly eccentric Shinobi becomes hard to handle, sometimes I am even called on to heal Civilians. I noticed that you are having a hard time with nausea. I can help, if you'll let me." Still on guard he slowly nodded, relaxing. It wasn't like he was out in another Country after all. This was Konoha and even if people still hated him they wouldn't be dumb enough to try and kill him off at the Hospital.

"Alright then. You settle yourself into bed and I'll be right back." Leaving the room Naruto slowly got back under the covers and shifted until he was comfortable. Now that she was gone and his body was less tense he felt the pain behind his eyes worsen and the room began to spin, making his stomach rebel. It had probably been a bad idea to move around so much. Groaning he put one of the pillows over his eyes and sighed in relief as the darkness eased some of the pain. He didn't know how long he lay there, trying to keep still and ignore the pain, but it felt like an eternity.

The door to his room opened and he lifted the pillow to see who it was. When the door stay open a crack but no one came inside he turned his head, curious, and strained his ears to listen to whoever was on the other side.

"Of course Hokage-sama. I shall treat him with utmost care, although we will probably have to follow the same protocols for Geniuses and Eccentrics. I believe I know what has been sapping his chakra, it is not an uncommon illness. It should only take me a few days of treatment and he will be well enough to leave." It was the woman's voice, Yuuko. The nurse who smelled like flowers rather than antiseptic.

"I leave him in your care Hanaki-san. I have utmost faith in your abilities." The voice was unmistakable. It was definitely the old man Hokage talking with the redhead. Turning a little red, embarrassed that he had heard them talking about him, he tried to roll over and groaned. He was such an idiot! How could he forget how much his head hurt. Dammit.

"Uzumaki-san? Are you alright?" Putting a hand on his forehead Yuuko did something with her chakra and the headache slowly receded from a sharp pain between his eyes to a dull ache in the back of his head.

"I've brought you something that should help. Once you drink down the medicine I'll let you eat." Pouting, the thought of Hospital food really turned his stomach, he suddenly realized there was a nice smell coming from the tray in her hands. It looked as if she had a bowl of ramen for him. Sitting up, slowly since he wasn't that much of an idiot, he looked between her and the dish, still a little wary but his mouth watering nonetheless.

"Here, drink this first. It's not that bad, just really bitter." Taking the cup he smelled the contents and was confused at how sweet it was. The woman stated it was bitter but anything that smelled this sweet couldn't be bitter. Shrugging he gulped it all down in one go and promptly turned green. A shudder of loathing passed through him as the bitterness sat heavily on his tongue. But after a few moment the taste began to fade. Before he could begin to complain he realised that his headache and nausea were gone.

"You certainly are brave." Giggling the woman set the tray onto his lap and opened the lid. The smell that wafted upward was one that at first seemed familiar, like ramen, but after a moment he realised it wasn't his favourite dish and sighed.

"This is Udon with Aburaage. I've added some vegetables as well. I want you to try eating as much as you can. Then you should rest and let the medicine do it's job. I'll come back for the bowl in a little while." Fussing over his blankets a moment she smiled before taking the empty cup and leaving the room. Once the door was closed Naruto hesitantly took up his chopsticks and tried some of the noodles.

"Woah! This stuff is Good!" Surprised he continued shovelling the food into his mouth, wondering why he'd never had this kind of dish before. It was just as good as ramen, though maybe not as salty. The thin slices of deep fried tofu where filled with something, though he didn't know what, and it just made everything all the more delicious. When he was finally finished he set the bowl and tray on the floor near his bed. It was then he noticed that there was a pitcher of water and a cup on his nightstand.

After laying back down he put his hands behind his head to think. Everything still felt expanded and a little off but now the feeling was't uncomfortable or painful. Whatever the redheaded woman had put into the medicine seemed to be working. It didn't take long for his eyes to close as his thoughts began to wander. By the time Yuuko came back around Naruto was fast asleep.

Smiling the woman fixed his blankets and took the bowl laden tray. She was quiet as she snuck out of the room, her eyes going cold when she spied a couple of nurses whispering down the hall.

"Uzumaki-san is sleeping now, take your chatter somewhere else." Rather than sneer at her the two women paled and scurried down the hall. Yuuko hadn't even needed to raise her voice, it was her eyes that frightened them off.

"Is that any way to talk to your colleagues?" Turning to see the silver haired Jonin, leader of Team Seven, she smiled.

"They are no colleagues of mine. Not when they treat innocent children with such disdain." Sniffing in contempt she shifted the tray and raised an eyebrow at the man.

"Come to check up on him? He's doing fine, the medicine is working like it should. Two or three more doses and he will be out of the hospital. Did the Hokage explain that his training will have to be a little... different when he leaves here?" Sighing the man unfolded his arms and scratched the back of his head.

"Yeah. Can't say that came as a surprise." The woman nodded slowly, understanding what he had implied.

"I am sure the Hokage-sama has everything in hand; he always does." With that she gave the man a small bow as she turned and headed down the hallway.

"It won't be the same as last time." She mumbled to herself just loud enough for the Jonin to hear as she turned a corner and vanished without a trace.


	3. Quarter

Days passed and for the first time ever Naruto was enjoying his stay in the hospital. Every day Yuuko would come by with interesting food, medicine, and her company; which the blonde valued more than he would let on. Whenever it was time for her to leave his room for the day a melancholy would suddenly come over him. He'd roll over under the covers and face away from the door, so that he wouldn't actually have to see her leaving. Once or twice he thought he heard a small sigh escape her lips but he chose not to comment on it. Although he had people he considered his precious friends, like Hokage-ji, Iruka-sensei, and Sakura-chan, none of them really had time to spend with him. Even Sasuke-teme was becoming more of a friendly rival now, rather than an enemy, though he wouldn't admit that out loud. But all of them had busy lives and he knew they couldn't spend all their time with him, even if it did hurt a little.

Waiting in his bed, his ears straining to hear the sound of familiar footsteps outside his door, he wondered why everything had started to sound oddly muffled outside. This had been going on for three days now and he began to wonder if it was his ears. A small prickle ran up his arms and he rubbed at them, agitated. The prickling had started about the same time as the muffling and it felt restraining, like he was stuck inside a cage and really wanted out. Annoyed he hopped out of bed and began pacing the room, trying to make the feeling go away. Walking to the door he opened it a crack and placed his ear beside it. To his surprise Yuuko was already outside his door and was talking to someone.

"His recovery is going very well Hokage-sama. Today will be his last dose, he should be well enough to leave tomorrow morning. Whether he is willing or able is the question however..." Confused he pressed himself against the wall and focused his entire attention on the conversation happening on the other side of the wall.

"You said that the wards you resorted to were quite strong, will he need time to adjust outside of them?" Wards? What was a Ward? He knew that the Hospitals had Wards, like the burn ward, but he was pretty sure that wasn't what they were talking about.

"Listening at cracks in the door Naruto?" Jumping away from the wall the blonde became flustered as he tried to come up with some excuse. Turning he looked over at his Jonin instructor with a sheepish grin.

"Ah, h-hey Kakashi-sensei. What brings you here?" Averting the question he walked away from the door and climbed back into bed, only to sit cross legged atop the blankets. The white haired man watched him with his one dark eye, his arms crossed lazily over his chest. Heaving a dramatic sigh he smiled beneath the ever present mask covering half of his face.

"I was told that you'd be out of the hospital soon and wanted to see how you were doing. There's been a... development... with Team Seven. As your Jonin instructor it is my duty to inform you that Team Seven is being disbanded for the time being." Once this piece of information finally registered the look on the blonde's face was nothing short of devastation.

"It's... not because of me... is it?" Kakashi's one eyebrow rose as a look of surprise crossed his face for a moment before his facial expression smoothed out to his usual mask.

"Not directly, no. But you three will be getting separate training for the next two months. Once that is done we'll see about putting the team back together. The mission that put you in the hospital opened some eyes to potential dangers and the decision was made after much debate." With a deeply aggravated sigh the young blonde stared at his blankets, only half comprehending what his jonin-instructor was saying. The feeling that he was only being told half truths wasn't new so he decided to let it go.

"Wait, then who am I going to be training with?" Rolling his shoulders slightly the man's neck cracked as he uncrossed his arms. Putting one hand on his hip and the other on the back of his neck he looked at Naruto sideways when next he spoke.

"Who will be teaching you is still up for debate currently. Unfortunately I'll be busy." Silence permeated the room. People liked to think that Naruto couldn't understand subtlety, but they would be dead wrong. From the way his Sensei was acting and seemed almost apologetic he imagined that the silver haired Jonin would be training Sasuke-teme. Pouting he glared at the blankets on his bed and crossed his own arms.

"Oh, Hatake-san. Have I interrupted something?" Brightening as soon as the redhead entered the room Naruto almost missed the subtle look that passed between them before Yuuko smiled politely.

"Not at all. I was just giving him the news." Reaching over he ruffled the blonde's hair with a small chuckle as Naruto grumbled sourly.

"I'll get out of your hair now." With a quick wave the man vanished in a puff of smoke. Sighing the blonde tugged on his blankets, hands balled into fists.

"What's wrong?" Setting down her usual tray of medicine and food she sat on the edge of the bed, her blue eyes showing clear concern. Reaching over she touched his forehead with the back of her hand and shook her head.

"Ah, Kakashi-sensei isn't going to be teaching me anymore. They've broken up team seven..." Anger leaving his body as this information began to fully sink in his shoulders sagged.

"I'm sure they have a plan for you. Hokage-sama wouldn't break up your team without a good reason." Holding out the medicine she smiled, her presence calm and reassuring like usual. Taking the cup from her hands he quickly knocked back the noxious brew and shuddered. Once that was done he looked up at the young redhead curiously. So far all of the food she'd brought him had been interesting and different from what he'd been able to try from any of the stalls that would sell to him. A small chuckle escaped her lips as she handed him a bowl filled with the same Udon she had given him when they met.

"Udon with Aburaage. Since this will be the last day you are my patient." Breaking his chopsticks at the wrong angle his head whipped around to look at her, eyes wide.

"WHAT! Why?" His tone was loud and there was a clear whine in it, almost like that of a small animal. Yuuko cringed slightly as she kept her eyes on her simple dress.

"That was the last dose of medicine, you should have felt it's effects by now. Uzumaki-san, this is a hospital. You can't stay here when you've been cured. I know that you like my company, but I am just a healer. It's my job to patch up shinobi, make them eat nutritious food, and ensure that they are well enough to return to their duties. That is as far as our relationship goes." Her words, though kind and gentle, felt like small knives twisting in his gut. Turning away from her Naruto tried his best to hold back tears of disappointment. Wasn't she his friend? They got along and even played games.

"...it's cause I'm me, isn't it?" His voice was small, almost a whisper, but her well trained ears picked up the sound and she frowned. Suddenly he felt arms wrap around him and looked up, surprised, as red hair flowed over his shoulders.

"You are a wonderful person Uzumaki Naruto. Someone who has been treated unkindly for far too long. If I could, I would like to stay friends with you." Warmth spread throughout his body, especially his face, as he began to fidget. Compliments of this nature were rare for him to receive and he didn't really know how to react.

"...kay. Friends." Was all he could get out from his suddenly tight throat. Smiling she let him go and tapped on his bowl, ordering him to eat as she produced another pair of chopsticks and set them down on his tray. Unlike usual she stay in the room while he ate, telling him the recipe and talking about different types of food with him until he was finished. Almost like magic he felt his eyes droop as she tucked him into bed and took up the tray.

"Good-bye, Uzumaki-san." Her words were distorted and faint as sleep slowly took over his mind.

Outside the room she closed the door one final time and jumped when a long nailed hand gripped her shoulder. Turning to stare up at the redheaded man her blues eyes went wide, before they were suddenly trained on the floor. That grip released her and a gruff voice reached her ears, barely containing anger.

"The Council wishes to speak with you. I suggest you come quietly." With a nod she placed the bowl on the ground in the hall of the hospital wing. Standing she placed her hands before her and bow slightly as the man replaced his hand and transported them away from the building.


End file.
